Social-Emotional & Personal Development
Growing Up Is Part of the Curriculum
Learning when and how to advocate for yourself and others, build meaningful friendships, work collaboratively, understand different perspectives, and take responsibility for your choices is an essential part of growing up.
These skills do not stop developing when children graduate from preschool. In elementary school, social-emotional and personal development become increasingly important as children navigate more complex relationships, discover their strengths, and develop independence.
At WHPS, we believe this growth deserves the same intentional attention we give reading, writing, and mathematics. Year after year, we see how it supports children's personal development and helps them reach their academic potential. When children have the tools to navigate setbacks, resolve conflicts, ask for what they need, and repair mistakes, they are better equipped to engage fully in learning.
That's why we teach these skills explicitly and provide abundant opportunities to practice them in a warm, nurturing environment.
A Simplified Progression
What Can This Child Do Now? What Comes Next?
Teachers use our detailed Social-Emotional Learning Progression to recognize children's strengths, identify emerging skills, and guide individual growth. Every classroom begins the day with Morning Meeting, a dynamic, engaging time for building community and explicitly teaching social skills that children practice throughout the school day.
Children also learn to evaluate their own progress. At twice-yearly Student-Led Conferences, they reflect with teachers and families and collaboratively identify one high-impact social-emotional goal for the next trimester, with clear, observable descriptors and practical ways to support growth at home and at school.
The progression gives children a roadmap. Reflection, practice, and partnership help them grow.
Typical Range of Skills
See How the Skills Grow
This TK–8th grade progression illustrates the typical range of social-emotional skills and goals we see in our students as they develop greater independence. Open any category to explore grade-by-grade examples.
Problem-Solving & CooperationFrom expressing needs with adult guidance to independently using mature strategies, cooperating with others, and advocating respectfully.
TK
Starts to express needs and respond to peers with adult guidance.
Example: Asks a teacher to help when two children want the same toy; listens to a peer after a teacher prompt.
K
Uses simple strategies like taking turns with reminders; beginning independence.
Example: Suggests trading a crayon after being prompted; agrees to take turns when guided by a teacher.
1st
Handles minor peer issues using basic steps with growing independence.
Example: Agrees to share playground equipment without adult help; uses words to ask a peer for a turn instead of grabbing.
2nd
Uses compromise and “I” statements; resolves most conflicts with minimal help.
Example: Says, “I feel upset when you cut in line. Can we try again?” and resolves small disagreements with minimal teacher involvement.
3rd
Works collaboratively in groups, balancing fairness and personal needs.
Example: Helps classmates decide project roles so everyone participates; balances personal ideas with group needs.
4th
Applies taught conflict-resolution strategies and seeks help when appropriate.
Example: Mediates with a fair suggestion; asks for support when a group is stuck; recognizes rising emotions and requests a pause.
5th
Independently uses mature strategies, models cooperation, and advocates respectfully when peers or groups are stuck.
Example: Leads a group to divide tasks equally; advocates for clearer directions; takes a short break and then re-engages independently.
6th
Navigates competing group priorities, uses constructive disagreement, and helps groups reach workable decisions.
Example: Listens to differing proposals, identifies shared goals, and helps a team agree on next steps.
7th
Recognizes complex peer dynamics, negotiates roles fairly, and advocates for self and others with respect.
Example: Addresses an uneven workload directly and invites quieter peers into a group decision.
8th
Uses flexible strategies to resolve disagreement, weigh competing needs, and sustain productive collaboration.
Example: Facilitates a difficult discussion, considers trade-offs, and helps a group move forward.
Respect & EmpathyFrom beginning awareness of others’ feelings to active listening, perspective-taking, repair, fairness, and balancing empathy with self-advocacy.
TK
Begins showing awareness of others’ feelings and perspectives with adult support.
Example: Notices when a peer is upset and looks to the teacher for guidance; offers comfort after prompting.
K
Shows emerging empathy by using kind words and responding to peers’ feelings with reminders.
Example: Says “Are you okay?” when a peer falls; shares materials when asked; comforts a sad friend.
1st
Begins to recognize and respond to others’ perspectives independently; shows simple acts of kindness more often without prompting.
Example: Offers supplies, invites a peer into a game, or makes room for someone who is left out.
2nd
Consistently shows kindness and respect; begins to anticipate peers’ needs in group settings.
Example: Welcomes a classmate into a project, adjusts behavior to help a nervous peer, or encourages a struggling partner.
3rd
Understands that words and actions can impact others; begins taking responsibility for those effects.
Example: Apologizes sincerely, makes amends, or reframes a comment after realizing it sounded unkind.
4th
Demonstrates consistent empathy and begins applying learned strategies to support peers and resolve differences.
Example: Uses active listening and “I” statements, encourages a classmate, or advocates for fairness.
5th
Shows empathy and respect even in challenging situations; independently balances conflict-resolution strategies, self-advocacy, and care for others.
Example: Summarizes another perspective, suggests fair compromises, validates feelings while expressing personal needs, and knows when adult help is appropriate.
6th
Considers perspectives shaped by different experiences and responds thoughtfully to the impact of words and actions.
Example: Listens when a peer describes a different experience and adjusts a response accordingly.
7th
Recognizes social pressure and exclusion, balancing empathy, personal boundaries, and respectful advocacy.
Example: Includes a peer who is being left out while setting a clear boundary when needed.
8th
Demonstrates nuanced perspective-taking and takes meaningful steps toward fairness, accountability, and repair.
Example: Acknowledges an unintended impact, listens without defensiveness, and follows through on a repair.
Self-ControlFrom following routines with substantial support to recognizing frustration and independently using strategies to regulate, reset, and return to learning.
TK
Engages in short, active tasks and practices familiar routines with teacher support.
Example: Stays engaged with blocks and follows a familiar cleanup routine with teacher guidance.
K
Follows directions with structure; needs reinforcement but shows progress.
Example: Completes cleanup with step-by-step reminders and follows directions with structured support.
1st
Stays on task for longer and begins to pause before acting with reminders.
Example: Waits in line with reminders to stay calm; uses words instead of pushing when frustrated.
2nd
Shows more consistent impulse control; starting to regulate transitions independently.
Example: Raises a hand instead of blurting with occasional prompting; begins to stop and think before acting.
3rd
Uses class routines and simple strategies to stay regulated in groups.
Example: Follows transition routines with fewer reminders and controls the impulse to interrupt with cues.
4th
Recognizes when self-control is slipping; can request a break or reset and return to task.
Example: Recognizes when overwhelmed, advocates for a short break, and returns to the task.
5th
Maintains focus in varied settings and uses self-regulation strategies independently, including advocating for clarification or pacing.
Example: Double-checks work, asks for clarification instead of guessing, and uses a brief reset to manage frustration.
6th
Identifies emotional and situational triggers and chooses strategies that support regulation and re-engagement.
Example: Recognizes rising frustration, takes an appropriate pause, and returns ready to participate.
7th
Adjusts regulation strategies across settings and reflects on how choices affect self and others.
Example: Uses a calming strategy before responding to a difficult message or disagreement.
8th
Independently selects and evaluates strategies for managing strong emotions, stress, and competing demands.
Example: Recognizes when a strategy is not working, seeks support when appropriate, and makes a constructive adjustment.
Focus & Follow-ThroughFrom completing concrete jobs with visual cues to organizing work, prioritizing tasks, seeking clarification, and managing effort independently.
TK
Uses visual cues and adult support to complete concrete classroom jobs.
Example: Completes a helper job with a visual checklist or cleans up after the teacher points to the cleanup chart.
K
Begins following routines more independently, with reminders.
Example: Puts a backpack away after reminders or returns to circle after redirection.
1st
Builds stamina for longer tasks and uses encouragement to return attention to the work.
Example: Completes work with a mid-task check-in or returns attention to a read-aloud after a cue.
2nd
Completes multi-step tasks with fewer reminders.
Example: Follows steps for a science project with one check-in or reads independently for 15–20 minutes before needing support.
3rd
Shows independence in routines and transitions, with growing persistence.
Example: Transitions from recess with minimal reminders or gathers needed supplies without forgetting items most of the time.
4th
Begins prioritizing tasks and advocating for support when the workload feels difficult to manage.
Example: Recognizes fading attention, requests a short break, returns to work, or chooses an urgent task first with a teacher prompt.
5th
Independently organizes and completes work; balances effort with self-care such as breaks and clarification.
Example: Brings materials without reminders, tracks due dates, asks for clarification, and uses a reset before returning to work.
6th
Plans multi-step work, monitors progress, and adjusts routines when attention or priorities shift.
Example: Breaks a longer assignment into checkpoints and revises the plan after a missed step.
7th
Prioritizes competing responsibilities, manages distractions, and seeks clarification proactively.
Example: Uses a planner to balance several deadlines and checks in early when expectations are unclear.
8th
Manages longer-term commitments with growing autonomy, evaluating the effectiveness of personal systems.
Example: Tracks milestones across projects and changes an approach when it is no longer effective.
Preparedness & PerseveranceFrom following simple routines with adult support to independently preparing, persisting, seeking resources, and advocating for what is needed to keep moving forward.
TK
Begins following simple routines with adult support; early practice in persistence.
Example: Puts toys away with teacher guidance or follows a simple direction such as lining up at the door.
K
Handles routines with reminders; growing independence in preparation.
Example: Lines up for recess with reminders or puts a folder in a backpack after a teacher prompt.
1st
Persists through small challenges with encouragement; routines becoming familiar.
Example: Keeps trying to zip a coat or stays with a puzzle with teacher encouragement.
2nd
Shows readiness with fewer reminders; beginning independent perseverance.
Example: Gets out needed materials without being told or begins preparing independently for a familiar routine.
3rd
Works through setbacks using emerging strategies, with some guidance.
Example: Stays with a difficult problem after encouragement or rereads directions when stuck.
4th
Initiates work and uses strategies such as breaking tasks into steps; asks for checkpoints or support when needed.
Example: Starts a project independently, asks for a checkpoint, breaks a task into parts, or resets and continues.
5th
Consistently prepares and perseveres through challenges using strategies and self-advocacy.
Example: Keeps working after major feedback, seeks resources or clarification, and uses planning, breaks, or rereading directions to persist.
6th
Anticipates materials and time needed, responds to feedback, and uses strategies to persist through complexity.
Example: Prepares for a multi-day project and uses feedback to revise rather than abandon the work.
7th
Plans ahead for competing demands and adapts strategies after setbacks while using available support.
Example: Reworks a timeline after an unexpected obstacle and asks a targeted question for help.
8th
Takes ownership of preparation and sustained effort, reflecting on setbacks to refine future approaches.
Example: Reviews what did not work, identifies a new strategy, and follows through on a revised plan.
The Bigger Goal
Knowing Yourself Well Enough to Keep Growing
Across elementary school, children increasingly set goals, reflect on progress, talk about strengths and challenges, and recognize when to persist, ask for help, repair a relationship, or take an appropriate reset.
That growing self-knowledge and independence matter far beyond elementary school.
Elementary at WHPS
See What This Looks Like in the Life of a School
These skills are practiced in classrooms, Morning Meetings, friendships, group work, goal-setting, reflection, and everyday moments across the school day.